The British Approach to Counterinsurgency : From Malaya and Northern Ireland to Iraq and Afghanistan

This timely and critical volume questions the effectiveness of Britain's 'hearts and minds' approach, challenging conventional counterinsurgency thinking by drawing on the expertise of regional and thematic specialists. The British 'hearts and minds' approach to counterinsurgency was credited with rare successes against insurgencies in Malaya (1948-60), Northern Ireland (1969-2007) and its widely admired approach to peacekeeping in the nineties. More recently, the British influenced the development of US counterinsurgency thinking on Iraq just as the British Army was perceived to be failing in Southern Iraq. Despite their attempt, the British military failed to restore their reputation by involvement in the 'good war' in Afghanistan. This timely and critical volume questions the effectiveness of Britain's 'hearts and minds' approach and challenges conventional counterinsurgency thinking by drawing on the expertise of regional and thematic specialists. Regional experts suggest that simplistic and over-optimistic lessons drawn from Britain's historical experiences in Malaya and Northern Ireland could not provide lessons for the complexities of Iraq and Afghanistan. Thematic specialists raise questions about the suitability of the military for 'humanitarian interventions' and the impact of these wars on domestic politics and society Front Matter....Pages i-xv The British Approach to Counterinsurgency: ‘Hearts and Minds’ from Malaya to Afghanistan?....Pages 1-48 Front Matter....Pages 49-49 Beyond Hearts and Minds: Perspectives on Counterinsurgency....Pages 51-89 Britain’s Vietnam Syndrome: Perspectives on British Counterinsurgency, the Media and Public Opinion....Pages 90-111 Bringing It All Back Home: The Militarisation of Britain and the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars....Pages 112-146 A Feminist Approach to British Counterinsurgency....Pages 147-172 Baha Mousa and the British Army in Iraq....Pages 173-204 Front Matter....Pages 205-205 Using and Abusing the Past: The Malayan Emergency as Counterinsurgency Paradigm....Pages 207-242 Dirty Wars: Counterinsurgency from Vietnam to Afghanistan....Pages 243-264 ‘Hearts and Minds’: British Counterinsurgency Strategy in Northern Ireland....Pages 265-290 Counterinsurgency and Human Rights in Northern Ireland....Pages 291-313 Counterinsurgency amidst Fragmentation: The British in Southern Iraq....Pages 314-336 Countering the Afghan Insurgency: Three Lessons Learned....Pages 337-351 Conclusion: The Military and British Democracy....Pages 352-383 Back Matter....Pages 384-442